10.16.2016

The new layout slowly develops...currently my focus is on arranging the city, which is defined by the placement of roads and sidewalks. This is both fun and somewhat complicated; it's nice to try different placements of structures, but also complicated trying to allow for somewhat realistic looking streets and placing buildings so that they look right when lined up next to each other.

For my previous layout, I used styrene sheets for the 'sidewalks/city blocks' (see here), which was adequate. However, styrene sheets are somewhat expensive for this role and are a little difficult to cut. This time I am using card stock. I paint it with a 'Dark Aircraft Grey', and then using a pencil add gridlines and then some weathering powder to 'dirty it up' and then finish up with a matte coat of spray paint:

In another new method, I'm actually glueing the sidewalks to the streets. Previously they were held in place by the streetlights, but since I''' me using a different type of streetlight this time, I decided to permanently affix the sidewalks to the street base using contact cement:

The advantages of both the cardstock and applying the sidewalks with contact cement is that the sidewalks now have a more realistic looking lower profile, and they now always sit flush to the street itself.

As I mentioned above, building placement is a tricky thing. I have small buildings, old buildings, new buildings, tall buildings, apartments, offices, retail, etc... so trying to combine them appropriately so it appears to be how a city could naturally evolve is kind of a challenge. There's a certain commitment level to it as well since the sidewalks are basically designd to fit a certain group of buildings.

I say all that to point out that my next blog post with any visible updates may take a while! So in the meantime, thanks for reading and check back soon!

About Me

I'm into N Scale to have fun. Growing up my Dad was really big into HO (U.S.A. of course, mostly Western U.S. roads like Great Northern, Milwaukee Road, Northern Pacific, etc...) and he built me a small N Scale layout which I enjoyed as a small boy. Of the various trains I had at the time, the brand 'Minitrix' stuck in my head. As the years passed, N Scale was forgotten as new interests took my time.
As a new parent, I got back into model trains through O Gauge (Lionel and MTH). However, the cost of this scale, and the space needed for the sort of layout I wanted, made it a very frustrating hobby. Then one day at a hobby shop in California, I came across the Trix 2003 catalog; Inside this catalog were beautiful models of trains across Europe shown on beautiful layouts - and I was converted! It took a few years, but most of the O Gauge was sold (or stored) and I used the funds to start my new fantasy in N Scale.
Soon, I also discovered the amazing trains of Japan in N Scale, and begin my quest to build an interesting urban layout in a complete fantasy setting where the great trains of the world can run side by side!